Flavors of New Mexico

When I moved away from New Mexico I missed my family, friends, the mountains, and food, though not necessarily in that order. My frequent trips home involved chile immersion on arrival, consuming it in every possible way. I would deliberately pack light to make sure there was ample room to return with a suitcase full of green chile groceries. My experience, and chile cravings, as a New Mexico expat was the impetus behind creating this list of New Mexico specialty food purveyors.

New Mexico companies that ship nationwide

New Mexico is an overlooked foodie destination with a unique flair for finding ways to add chile to virtually every meal. There are numerous delicious treats that are familiar to locals, but difficult to procure for people outside of the state. If you can’t come for a visit to get your supplies, most of these locally owned companies will send you whatever you may want or need.

Celina’s Biscochitos specializes in biscochitos, the state cookie of New Mexico. She uses her grandmother’s recipe, which involves hand-making and hand-cutting each cookie individually to ensure the highest quality and exceptional flavor. The finished product has a “melt in your mouth” quality.

In addition to traditional biscochitos, Celina’s offers flavorful twists on the original recipe, like green chile pecan, red chile, lemon, cocoa chocolate chip, and cranberry walnut. When experimenting with new flavors, her is “if we can’t taste a traditional biscochito in each one of our products, it’s no longer a biscochito.”

The Chocolate Cartel is obsessed with making the best tasting chocolate around. No fluff, no flair, just amazing recipes coupled with the finest cacao on the planet. They proudly put people to work, not machines, executing every step by hand.

Certified Master Chocolatier and Chef de Cuisine Scott J. Van Rixel opened a quaint chocolate shop in Taos, New Mexico in the old jail in 2001. He converted the old jail cells into chocolate tasting rooms. His memorable confections generated wild buzz from locals and visitors. Soon, his brother, Tim, joined him in New Mexico to help him expand operation. Together, they continued the mission of creating simple, beautiful, delicious handmade chocolates, created one addictive piece at a time.

In 2009 they relocated to Albuquerque and in 2018 they opened a second location, a cafe in Old Town Albuquerque.

Chimayo To Go launched in 1998. They offer a wide variety of New Mexico products, including several that draw on the delicious flavor of Chimayo heirloom chile. They pride themselves on pairing high quality New Mexico food products with excellent customer service, bringing the flavors of the Land of Enchantment to people around the world.

Choose from a wide variety of jellies/jams, salsas, sauces, cookbooks, mixes, snacks, dips, dry chile and spices. With a large assortment of products, Chimayo to Go has everything you need to compile the ultimate New Mexico care package.

Coonridge’s business philosophy extends beyond providing excellent cheese. They are committed to proving that wonderful taste and nutritional superiority doesn’t have to come at the expense of the environment. Beyond promoting sustainable, non-chemical, non-factory farmed animal husbandry and cheese making, Coonridge strives to live in harmony with the natural world.

The farm is located at 8000 feet elevation, near the Continental Divide. Each morning after milking, the goats and their Maremma guardian dogs go off to enjoy their day in the rim rock country of western New Mexico. There are no fences and no human neighbors for miles. The dogs protect the goats from predators, including mountain lions, bears, coyotes and wolves. The goats are not given hormones, antibiotics or chemical wormers.

Customers appreciate the quality of the cheeses. The goats appreciate feeding in the wild, high desert beauty of New Mexico.

The Franzoy family first began growing chile in Hatch, New Mexico over 80 years ago. When they first arrived from Austria they had no idea what chile was. Today, the Franzoy clan has grown to over 700 and many still farm in the Hatch valley. The owners of the Hatch Chile Store are part of that legacy. Headquartered in Hatch, their history and heritage ensures that their green chile is the best you can get, grown on a family farm.

Hatch Chile Store sells several varieties of red and green chile, ranging from mild to wild. Hand picking, roasting, peeling, and packing guarantees the highest quality product. They ship fresh chile during harvest and frozen chile throughout the year.

New Mexico Gold was established in Socorro, NM by Ernest and Theresa McBride. Together, Ernest and Theresa created a unique product, a smooth and addictive olive oil infused with authentic New Mexico red and green chiles, flavored with a hint of garlic. Ernest and Theresa started out giving samples of oil to friends and co-workers. One co-worker called it “gold.” That was the beginning of New Mexico Gold.

Though they got off to a great start, the business was put on hold in 2010 when Theresa was diagnosed with ALS. She passed away in 2011. After struggling for several years, Ernest’s children joined him. Together they have focused on making his and Theresa’s dream a reality.​

The Oro Rojo is infused with red chile and garlic, whereas the Oro Verde is infused with green chile and garlic.

Noisy Water Winery was started by a family of 5th generation farmers. Based in the mountains of Ruidoso, New Mexico, they proudly bring International Awards and accolades home to their small town winery. They make wine, grow their own grapes, & take the craft of making wine seriously, though they don’t take much else seriously.

They believe people drink wine for fun, not for status, not for prestige, and definitely not for approval from an “expert”. Creating great wine for people to enjoy is their mission. They are New Mexico born and New Mexico True (including the grapes), and they love what they do. Cheers & Viva Vino!”

Take your appetite on a tour of New Mexico. Peek inside Apple Canyon’s online gourmet general store – a source for premium specialty food products and gifts made in New Mexico. The owner, Anna, is committed to creating the finest, award-winning gourmet food products. She combines imagination and history with unique high-quality ingredients to create an incredible culinary experience. She believes the soul of cooking is about enjoying life and celebrating with friends and family.

Apple Canyon’s products draw on the influences of Spanish, Mexican and Native American cuisine, resulting in a truly New Mexican experience. Her products have found a place at the tables of fine resorts and restaurants, gourmet, gift, gallery and grocers throughout the US and in Germany. The product assortment, serving suggestions, easy-to-prepare recipes and informative product descriptions make shopping at Apple Canyon an enjoyable and taste-tempting experience.

Southwest Heritage Mill was established in 2005 as Indio-Hispano Native Foods, LLC. It quickly grew from a community-based company in Albuquerque to a company with a national and international presence. They focus on roasting and milling whole grain, non-gmo corn, using red, white, blue and yellow corn varieties to produce the highest quality products.

Whole grain cornmeal and corn products have all the essential nutrients and fiber that naturally-occurs in the corn kernel. The kernal has a higher oil content compared to de-germed or refined corn. The process of de-germing removes most of the mineral content and fiber that is contained in the germ and bran.

When the owners of Zia Energia launched in 2013, they had a vision. They wanted to create a sustainable beverage company that focused on giving back to New Mexico through supporting art, music, and the local economy. That dream has now blossomed into a full-fledged reality.

They make unique, high quality soft drinks, currently offering three flavors with a line of sparkling waters launching soon! They invest a portion of their proceeds into projects at Zia Pueblo designed to generate agricultural products that can be used by the company, like investments in beekeeping for honey and planting watermelon crops for a new beverage (under wraps for now).